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Q:What is wrong with this?
A:The shoulder belt is worn under the arm.
It should be worn over the shoulder at
all times.
{CAUTION:
You can be seriously injured if you wear
the shoulder belt under your arm. In a
crash, your body would move too far
forward, which would increase the chance
of head and neck injury. Also, the belt
would apply too much force to the ribs,
which are not as strong as shoulder
bones. You could also severely injure
internal organs like your liver or spleen.
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Q:What is wrong with this?
A:The belt is twisted across the body.
{CAUTION:
You can be seriously injured by a twisted
belt. In a crash, you would not have the
full width of the belt to spread impact
forces. If a belt is twisted, make it straight
so it can work properly, or ask your
dealer/retailer to x it.
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To unlatch the belt, push the button on the buckle.
The belt should go back out of the way.
Before you close the door, be sure the belt is out
of the way. If you slam the door on it, you can
damage both the belt and your vehicle.
Shoulder Belt Height Adjustment
Before you begin to drive, move the shoulder belt
height adjuster to the height that is right for you.
Adjust the height so that the shoulder portion of the
belt is centered on your shoulder. The belt should
be away from your face and neck, but not falling
off your shoulder. Improper shoulder belt height
adjustment could reduce the effectiveness of the
safety belt in a crash.
To move it down,
pull on the center
adjuster control
labeled PULL.
You can move the
height adjuster up
just by pushing
up on the shoulder
belt guide.
After you move the height adjuster to where you
want it, try to move it down without pushing in
to make sure it has locked into position.
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Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone, including pregnant
women. Like all occupants, they are more likely to
be seriously injured if they do not wear safety belts.
A pregnant woman should wear a lap-shoulder
belt, and the lap portion should be worn as low
as possible, below the rounding, throughout
the pregnancy.The best way to protect the fetus is to protect
the mother. When a safety belt is worn properly,
it is more likely that the fetus will not be hurt
in a crash. For pregnant women, as for anyone,
the key to making safety belts effective is wearing
them properly.
Right Front Passenger Position
To learn how to wear the right front passenger’s
safety belt properly, seeDriver Position on
page 23.
The right front passenger’s safety belt works the
same way as the driver’s safety belt — except
for the following.
If you ever pull the shoulder portion of the belt
out all the way, you will engage the child restraint
locking feature. If this happens, just let the belt
go back all the way and start again.
When the safety belt is not in use, slide the latch
plate up the safety belt webbing. The latch plate
should rest on the stitching on the safety belt,
near the guide loop.
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Center Passenger Position
(3rd, 4th and 5th Row)
Lap Belt
If your vehicle has third, fourth or fifth row bench
seats, someone can sit in the center positions.
When you sit in a center seating position in the
third, fourth or fifth row, you have a lap safety belt,
which has no retractor. To make the belt longer,
tilt the latch plate and pull it along the belt.To make the belt shorter, pull its free end as
shown until the belt is snug.
Buckle, position and release it the same way
as the lap part of a lap-shoulder belt. If the belt
isn’t long enough, seeSafety Belt Extender
on page 40.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle
the safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
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Center Passenger Position
(2nd Row)
If your vehicle has a second row bench seat,
someone can sit in the center position. When
you sit in the center position in the second
row bench seat, you have a lap-shoulder belt
which works the same way as the rear seat
outside passengers’ belts.
To learn how to wear a lap-shoulder belt
see, “Lap-Shoulder Belt” underRear Outside
Passenger Positions on page 34.
Rear Outside Passenger Positions
It is very important for rear seat passengers
to buckle up! Accident statistics show that unbelted
people in the rear seat are hurt more often in
crashes than those who are wearing safety belts.
Rear passengers who are not safety belted
can be thrown out of the vehicle in a crash.
And they can strike others in the vehicle who
are wearing safety belts.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The positions next to the windows have
lap-shoulder belts. Here is how to wear a
lap-shoulder belt properly.
1. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt
across you. Do not let it get twisted.
The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the
belt across you very quickly. If this happens,
let the belt go back slightly to unlock it.
Then pull the belt across you more slowly.
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2. Push the latch plate into the buckle until
it clicks.
Pull up on the latch plate to make sure
it is secure.
When the shoulder belt is pulled out all the
way, it will lock. If it does, let the belt go
back all the way and start again.
If the belt is not long enough, seeSafety Belt
Extender on page 40.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle
the safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
3. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the
shoulder part.
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The lap part of the belt should be worn low and
snug on the hips, just touching the thighs. In a
crash, this applies force to the strong pelvic bones.
And you would be less likely to slide under the lap
belt. If you slid under it, the belt would apply force at
your abdomen. This could cause serious or even
fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go over the
shoulder and across the chest. These parts of the
body are best able to take belt restraining forces.
The safety belt locks if there is a sudden stop or
a crash.
{CAUTION:
You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder
belt is too loose. In a crash, you would
move forward too much, which could
increase injury. The shoulder belt should
t against your body.
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